One Year Commemoration of Ayawaso West Wuogon Bye Election Violence will Come Off with or without Police Protection

It is not surprising that the leadership of the Ghana Police Service have allowed themselves to be used by hard-line politicians within the Akufo-Addo-led government to shy away from their core mandate of maintaining law and order. The foremost duty of the Police is to protect citizens on whose sweat they owe their livelihoods. In fact, it is the constitutional right of citizens to be protected by the State. Some political theorists regard the State as ‘a night watchman’ i.e the State should be concerned with providing protection for the citizenry.

The one year commemoration of the dastardly act perpetuated by state sponsored brigands at Ayawaso West Wuogon remains an act that must be condemned on any day, and hazard lights must be flashed to say such an act must not be repeated. The idea of the commemoration is to remind Ghanaians of what actually happened and how steps must be taken to secure justice for the victims, and most importantly, advise our compatriots to move away from violence as we approach the 2020 election.

In planning this program, civil society groups, religious bodies, traditional authorities and other political parties came on board. Indeed, the team putting together the program has officially invited the New Patriotic Party to join other political parties and other groups to mark the day. As law abiding citizens, the Regional Police Command was duly notified.

To be exact, on Monday, January 27, 2020, at the behest of Greater Accra Regional Secretary of the NDC, Hon Theophilus Tetteh Chaie, I deposited a letter at the Greater Accra Regional Commander’s office at about 3:15 pm to notify them and ask for Police protection. For some unknown reason, the Police has sent out a wireless message, warning all unit, district, divisional etc heads not to dispatch personnel to the event grounds at La Bawaleshie Presbyterian Church. The wireless message warned personnel who may flout the directive that they will be punished. One significant thing is that, the Police did not deny the fact that the organizers did not notify them. In fact, the wireless message bears the title of the letter I delivered at the Regional Commander’s office.

But one can understand why the Police kowtowed to this politically laden directive. No matter how you look at it, the Ayawaso West Wuogon bye election violence remains a shameful blot on the Akufo Addo government. Like the spot of a leopard, it can never be washed or cleaned. It’s a shameful spectacle that exposes the present government as a violent and intolerant organization seeking to hold on to power through violent means. For such a day to be marked when government has decided to shield the perpetrators and left the victims to their sorry faith, it will lower it’s already low public rating hence the need to ensure the commemoration does not come off.

Unknown to the NPP government, there are many police personnel out there with conscience who were averse to what happened a year ago. They wished the name of their much revered service was not dragged in the mud the way it was done. The hawkishness of the leadership of the police was exposed during the Emile Short Commission hearing. Personnel with conscience dreaded how the reputation of the service was injured as a result of that incident.

Unfortunately, the leadership of the service are bent on doing the bidding of their political masters. How on Earth would a state agency decide not to provide protection for citizens who have duly notified it without assigning any reason? This is unconscionable and cannot only be blamed on political manipulation. But the point must be forcefully made that if the NPP and their assigns in the Police Service think this their infantile wireless message will deter the organizers from going ahead with the program, then they should try a different strategy. The programme will come off even if they decide not to provide protection. In any case we have long read through these tricks so we are not surprised. In fact, the NPP can unleash it’s Invincible Forces and get them dressed like security personnel like they have been doing to attempt to foment trouble tomorrow.

By Amos Blessing Amorse
Deputy Greater Accra Regional Youth Organizer
National Democratic Congress